UHL

Share this story

Photo: Montreal Canadiens rookie forward Christian Thomas celebrates his first NHL goal in the first period of a 4-3 overtime loss to the Edmonton Oilers (courtesy of Minas Panagiotakis/Icon Sportswire)

His father Steve scored 421 goals in the NHL, so Christian Thomas has a long way to go to catch him in that category. But the longest journey begins with the first step, or, in this case, with the first NHL goal for the younger Thomas as the Montreal Canadiens forward netted his milestone marker in a 4-3 overtime loss to the Edmonton Oilers. Read more»

Share this story

Photo: Calgary Flames prospect Drew Shore (L) and Los Angeles Kings prospect Nick Shore (R) are two siblings that have had a taste of NHL action this season (courtesy of Rich Graessle/Icon Sportswire and Fred Kfoury III/Icon Sportswire)

When a young hockey player is drafted, the first thing he does is thank his family. He turns to them, shakes their hands, and hugs them. It’s a sign of appreciation and respect, because he realizes the sacrifice made by those around him to get him to that point. It wasn’t just one person doing; it was a family effort. Read more»

Share this story

Photo: Arizona Coyotes top prospect Max Domi will be tasked with helping the franchise rebound next season. (courtesy of Aaron Bell/OHL Images)

Beside the play of top-line defensemen Keith Yandle and Oliver Ekman-Larsson, it has been a relatively forgettable year for the Arizona Coyotes. The team is firmly out of a playoff position and well off-pace to match last season’s total of 89 points, which landed them ninth in the Western Conference. Arizona’s AHL team, the Portland Pirates, is middle-of-the-pack but holding on to a playoff position in the Eastern Conference.

Share this story

Photo: Grand Rapids Griffins forward and Detroit Red Wings prospect Teemu Pulkkinen is no stranger to the front of the net as he is currently the leading goal scorer in the AHL with 27 in 41 games (courtesy of Frank Jansky/Icon Sportswire)

It seems that the Detroit Red Wings have a penchant for drafting and developing forwards in the American Hockey League before seeing them excel on NHL ice. Those in the Motor City might not have to wait much longer to add another homegrown talent to their permanent NHL roster with the emergence of 2015 AHL All-Star forward, Teemu Pulkkinen. Read more»

Share this story

Photo: SHK 37 Piestany goaltender and 2015 prospect Denis Godla was named the top goaltender of the 2015 U20 World Junior Championship after leading Slovakia to a bronze medal (courtesy of Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images)

It’s been a bit of a slow winter on the central European prospect front, and in general, there has been some concern over the past 5+ years in the overall lack of development of players coming from the Czech Republic and, in particular, Slovakia and Germany. All three countries have seen a rapid decline in the production of high-end talents, with many of their stronger players already choosing to head primarily to North America or Sweden by the time they are 16 years old. Read more»